Case Number 16839: Small Claims Court

THE UNIVERSE: COMPLETE SEASON TWO (BLU-RAY)

The Charge

Exploring the Edges of the Unknown

Opening Statement

Its very existence has inspired everything from philosophical debate to
religious fervor. Its secrets continue to mystify scholars and shake up
scientists. For every given confirmed by astronomers and physicists, another 100
subsections continue to confuse. It's safe to say that the Universe itself is so
vast, so all encompassing in its importance and influence, that a cable channel
could make an amazingly detailed series out of its many remarkable facets -- and
wouldn't you know it, the History Channel has. While Season One focused on the
planets and attributes that make up our solar system, The Universe: Complete
Season Two (Blu-ray) concentrates on exploring some of the enigmas that
exist in the vast regions of space. If you are looking for a compelling Carl
Sagan-like take on the subject, you need to explore the seminal Cosmos
another time. The Universe is something wholly different. This is nothing
more than well done fact-based documentary style talking head material, with
some clever CG accents to keep the kiddies awake.

Facts of the Case

Spread out over four discs and running a staggering 14-plus hours, the Second
Season of The Universe is a lot like picking up a whole collection of
Omni back issues at a local garage sale. As you skim through each
issue/episode, you get a little academia, a great deal of speculation, a splash
of science fiction, and some fascinating images to look at. While some subjects
lend themselves to a more entertaining approach, there is still a great deal of
important information and documentation present. One could easily see this
series as part of some expansive secondary education course, it so effortlessly
covers its often complicated topics. The subjects covered in the 18 episodes
included in this Blu-ray box set are as follows:

Disc 1 * "Alien Planets" -- the possibility of
planets outside out solar system * "Cosmic Holes" -- the concept
of worm holes and their value as a form of time/space travel *
"Mysteries of the Moon" -- an overview of how our closest cosmic
neighbor affects the Earth * "The Milky Way" -- an exploration
of the galaxy that houses our home planet * "Alien Moons" -- a
look at the moons within our solar system, other than ours

Disc 2 * "Dark Matters" -- it makes up 96% of our
Universe and yet we know little about it -- until now *
"Astrobiology" -- a discussion of the possibility of life on other
planets * "Space Travel" -- new theories on how we could
conceivable travel around the cosmos * "Supernovas" -- the death
of a star is discussed

Disc 3 * "Constellations" -- why some stars come
together to form "patterns" * "Unexplained Mysteries"
-- theories like 'life on mars' and time travel are dissected *
"Cosmic Collisions" -- when worlds collide, so to speak *
"Colonizing Space" -- beyond sci-fi, how to live in space *
"Nebulas" -- the fascinating, often gorgeous cosmic gas clouds are
explored

Disc 4 * "Wildest Weather in the Cosmos" -- which
planet has the best climate, and which has the worst * "Biggest
Things in Space" -- items that pale in comparison to our own imagination * "Gravity" -- the most basic of scientific properties is
explained * "Cosmic Apocalypse" -- it's the end of everything as
we know it, and there's little we can do to stop it

The Evidence

There are two ways to look at The Universe, both of which provide
valid insights into how much you'll enjoy/appreciate the effort here. The first
is as a font of compelling scientific information. All of the educators
involved, from actual researchers to long held experts in their field, find ways
of making this material much more palpable than it should be. After all, there
are some fairly mind-bending concepts being freely tossed around here. One
moment, we are learning about the tides and how our Moon manages their ebb and
flow. The next, someone is trying to explain the cosmic "web" to us.
On occasion, it tends to implode, the notion of worm holes or dense dark matter
throwing us laymen for a big fat loop. But more times than not, The
Universe measures out its critical convolutions in small, digestible
dimensions. And since you don't have to know much about the first series to
experience the pleasures of the second, there's a self-contained nature to the
entire experience.

Still, get ready to have your tiny, media mutated mind blown by some of what
these scientists have to say. Space travel gets a good workout, the notion of
moving beyond our own solar system given real credence and contemplation. Life
on other worlds also finds itself in the debate crosshairs, the age old
"inevitability" of such a discovery undermined by some very accurate
factual certainties. Perhaps the biggest surprise is the number of people
predicting a rapid and rather sensational end to our galaxy. Be it by a huge
black hole, a planet/asteroid collision, or a sudden "random quantum
fluctuation," there are a lot of hypotheticals that put life on the planet
as we know it in serious -- albeit speculative -- jeopardy. On the other hand,
there are times when the subject matter -- gravity for example -- grows dull and
irritating. Between all the magnetic polar spinning core corrections and overall
established mumbo jumbo, we wonder if a better subject couldn't have been
unearthed.

The second way to look at this material is as a marvelous feast for the
eyes. The special effects here, while relegated to recreations using computer
graphics and images, really help sell the spectacle, and there are times when
the visuals validate the outsized ideas being tossed around. We've seen some of
this material before -- whenever anyone discusses the Milky Way or the various
supernovas that have occurred, we get the standard picture presentations. But
the notion of what goes on inside a black hole, or the after effects of two
planets colliding makes for wonderful blockbuster viewing. Indeed, The
Universe stimulates more than just your brain. It's an amazing optical
gallery and a wise window into one's soul. It's intriguing to think about what
lies beyond the simple stars in our galaxy. A show like this helps fuel said
conjecture while delivering enough education and insight to make the journey
seem less winsome.

Blu-ray is the way to go with something like The Universe. The 1.78:1
1080i transfer is terrific, retaining the look and feel of high definition
presentation. The older stock footage does suffer, but overall, the special
effects, CGI, and interview material looks amazing. The colors are crisp and
very bright, and there is a density of detail that is hard to beat. While there
a few flaws here and there (some vague halos around some planets, a few seconds
of optical bleeding) there is much more good than bad. Much more. Sadly, the
sonic situation is a little less impressive. Instead of giving us an HD Master
audio track and something a little more imposing, The Universe is
presented in standard stereo -- and it's PCM uncompressed 2.0 at that.
Considering the ambient elements involved (and the constant musical score), one
would figure that a 5.1 Surround soundtrack would be mandatory. Alas, we appear
to have a project that believes in its broadcast reality to the point of aiming
all its attributes toward a TV sized screen. As for added content, we get a
rather lifeless look at "Backyard Astronauts" (amateur astronomers and
space scientists). That's it.

Closing Statement

When Carl Sagan unveiled Cosmos back in 1980, it was viewed as a
visionary work of all encompassing wonder. Few thought it could be improved
upon, and from an entertainment standpoint, they are right. The late, great
scientific scholar infused his outsized work with a kind of mystical humanism
that is all but missing from something like The Universe: Complete Season
Two. Luckily, this updated series has nearly three decades of additional
research and revelations to work with, so we'll take the occasional droning
mathematician for the sake of factual clarity. Even in its second season, this
History Channel offering discovers new and unique ways of bringing our massive
cosmic neighborhood to life. While it may not quell the conversation about how
we got here, who "made" us, and what such a god-given/god-less
existence truly means, it will provide hours of contemporary and in-depth
information.

The Verdict

Not guilty. A very inventive and intriguing journey through the galaxy...and
beyond.